Housing News

June 2017

June 29, 2017 - Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California, working in partnership with the City of Santa Rosa and the Sonoma County Community Development Commission, is hosting a Fair Housing Law and Practice Seminar on June 29, 2017 from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Sonoma County Community Development Commission, 1440 Guerneville Road, Santa Rosa, CA. For more information, click here.

May 2017

May 15, 2017 - The City Council appointed seven members to the Community Housing Committee. The Committee’s work will focus on the provision of affordable and workforce housing in our community, specifically reviewing City housing policies to ensure they align with the City’s housing goals. The Committee’s first work assignment will be to update the City’s Housing Action Plan which is a strategic plan for providing more affordable and diverse housing in our community. To learn more about the roles and responsibilities of the Committee, visit: http://www.ci.healdsburg.ca.us/609/Community-Housing-Committee.

March 2017

March 2, 2017 - The City of Healdsburg Planning Commission approved a mixed use project adding 37 deed-restricted affordable housing units to the City. The apartments will include 1, 2 and 3 bedrooms ranging in size from 673 square feet to 1,174 square feet. All of the units will be available to low or moderate income residents earning up to $99,100 for a family of four. Rents will range between $1,451-$2,725 depending upon unit size and family income. to read the full press release, click here.

February 2017

February 27, 2017 - The City of Healdsburg closed yesterday on its purchase of the 721-723 Center Street property, taking another step to realize its commitment to make safe, affordable, and decent housing a top priority in Healdsburg. “We have taken a number of steps toward our Council goal of increasing and retaining affordable housing in the community, such as working with affordable housing developers on the design and construction of 66 new affordable rental units, offering assistance to tenants at risk of displacement, and successfully passing a 2% Transient Occupancy Tax increase for the purpose of providing affordable housing services and programs,” said Shaun McCaffery, Mayor. “Purchasing the Center Street property aligns perfectly with the City Council’s goal of developing and retaining affordable housing in our community.” To read the full press release, click here.

December

December 5, 2016 - The City Council established the Rental Unit Rehabilitation Loan Program which offers property owners of qualifying rental units financial assistance for the rehabilitation and improvement of existing rental units. The program offers property owners incentives to retain and improve our community’s valuable rental-housing stock while also maintaining affordability through limited annual rent increases. For more information, please visit: http://www.ci.healdsburg.ca.us/794/Rental-Unit-Rehabilitation-Loan-Program

December 5, 2016 - The City Council approved a Disposition, Development and Loan Agreement and financing for the 1201 Grove Street property to support construction of a 25-unit affordable rental housing project with Pacific West Communities. Approval of the Agreement enabled the Developer to move forward with obtaining building permit approvals, with construction anticipated to begin this spring. For more information on 1201 Grove Street, please visit: http://www.ci.healdsburg.ca.us/786/Upcoming-Affordable-Housing-Project

December 19, 2016 - Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) provide Healdsburg residents with additional housing options that may be more affordable and which can benefit both the property owner and those looking for permanent housing solutions. The City recently revised its ADU regulations and implemented a streamlined permit process to help property owners interested in constructing an ADU. If you are interested in learning more about how you can construct an ADU on your property, click here.

December 19, 2016 - The City Council approved a Purchase and Sale Agreement to purchase the property located at 721-723 Center Street for affordable housing purposes. The property contains 8 multifamily units that are currently housing local families and are being rented below market rate. Also in December, the City Council approved a Memorandum of Understanding with Burbank which outlines the preliminary terms of a long-term lease, under which Burbank would assist with the rehabilitation, operation and maintenance of 721-723 Center Street.

October

October 17, City Council Meeting – The City Council held the second reading and adopted the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance (IHO). Council also adopted the policies and procedures to implement the IHO; which provide staff guidance on the implementation of the IHO. The staff report for the IHO policies and procedures can be found here, and the PowerPoint can be found by clicking here.

The City Council also received a presentation from Housing Land Trust of Sonoma County on the success to date housing local lower income families under the City’s Inclusionary Housing Ordinance. To watch a short video click here, to see HLT’s PowerPoint click here. If you are interested in more information on HLT or are interested in an application please click here.

October 3, City Council Meeting – The City Council held the second reading and adopted the Growth Regulation Ordinance (GRO). To see the staff report, click here. Council also adopted the policies and procedures to implement the Growth Regulation Ordinance; which provide staff guidance on the implementation of the GRO. The City Council also considered revisions to the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance (IHO), including a presentation from Staff and comments from the public, and introduced the IHO for adoption. The staff report for the IHO can be found here, and the PowerPoint can be found by clicking here

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September

September 21, 2016 – To help achieve our community’s housing goals, the City has partnered with Pacific West Communities to design and construct a 25-unit affordable family housing development at 1201 Grove Street. On September 21, 2016 Pacific West Communities was awarded California Tax Credit Allocations which will help fund the project. For more information on the project at 1201 Grove Street, click here.

September 19, City Council Meeting – The City Council considered the proposed Growth Regulation Ordinance (GRO) which would manage the type and pace of residential growth in the City, if approved by the voters on November 8th. After receiving information from Staff and receiving input from the community, the City Council introduced the GRO for first reading. For the staff report on the Growth Regulation Ordinance, click here and for the PowerPoint presentation click here.

July

July 18, City Council Meeting - On July 18th, following seven months of extensive community outreach and public input, the City Council unanimously adopted the City’s first ever Housing Action Plan (HAP). The HAP, drafted by the Community Housing Committee (CHC) with input from residents, is a strategic plan that promotes more affordable and diverse housing in our community including multi-family rental units, small lot and higher density product types. Combined with the proposed update to the Growth Management Ordinance, the Housing Action Plan will help to increase housing affordable to working families while maintaining our unique small town character.

The HAP establishes a vision for housing in Healdsburg that articulates the kind of housing we would like created in our community and sets quantifiable objectives of what should be accomplished by 2022 to achieve the Vision. Progress on each Objective will be assessed by setting a series of Targets that demonstrate achievement of the Objectives, and a series of Recommendations that are defined programs and actions that need to be taken to meet the Targets for each Objective. To read the complete version of the HAP adopted by City Council on July 18, 2016, click here.

June

June 29, 6:00 pm City Hall Council Chamber, 401 Grove Street. Join us for our Upcoming Open House. Drop in and give us your feedback on our first ever Housing Action Plan to create more diverse and affordable housing options in our community. Click here for more information.

May

Upcoming Community Housing Committee Meetings – The Community Housing Committee will be holding several Special Meetings in addition to the Regularly Scheduled meetings in order to complete the Housing Action Plan! The Committee will meet June 2, June 13, June 27, June 29, July 6 and July 11, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. in the City Hall Council Chamber, 401 Grove Street. The Committee will also meet June 8, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. at the Healdsburg Community Center, Room Four, 1557 Healdsburg Avenue. For questions or additional information, please contact Karen Massey at 431.3317 or by email at housing@ci.healdsburg.ca.us

Community Housing Committee Meeting May 3, 2016 – The Community Housing Committee held a Special Meeting to discuss the Housing Action Plan; the Committee voted to approve the Housing Action Plan Vision Statement, and conceptually approved the HAP Objectives and the HAP Priority Recommendations. For more information, click here.

April

April 28th, 6:00 pm at Community Center, 1557 Healdsburg Avenue. Drop in, Open House Forum for you to give us feedback on our first ever Housing Action Plan. For more information, click here.

Final GMO Recommendation to the City Council - On April 18, 2016 the City Council voted to approve the recommendation from the Community Housing Committee on the Growth Management Ordinance. For more information and to view the presentation, click here.

March

Community Workshop March 31, 2016 - On March 31st the City hosted the second in a series of three community workshops. Five experienced housing developers and lenders discussed the mechanics of residential development, market realities in Healdsburg, and the types of policy changes that may need to occur in order for the community to achieve the kinds of housing development it would like to see. For more information and to view the presentation, click here.

February

Low Income Housing Report - In early February, the Legislative Analyst’s Office issued a report entitled ‘Perspectives on Helping Low-Income Californians Afford Housing.’ The report concludes that existing affordable housing programs assist only a small proportion of low-income Californians and that expanding these programs would be extremely challenging and prohibitively expensive. The report also identifies how more private housing development in coastal urban communities would help make housing more affordable for low-income families. The full report can be found at: http://www.lao.ca.gov/Reports/2016/3345/Low-Income-Housing-020816.pdf.

Community Workshop February 25, 2016 - On February 25th the City hosted the first in a series of three housing workshops to solicit the public’s final input on housing needs and priorities for the next six years. These workshops will result in the preparation of the City’s first ever Housing Action Plan by summer 2016. For more information and to view the presentation, click here.

Rental Housing Survey Results - To further assess our community housing needs, in January the City completed a rental unit survey of approximately 372 multi-family rental units. The purpose of the survey was to obtain greater information about the multi-family rental housing stock available in our community today in order to assess community housing needs and use the information as a baseline for formulating new housing programs going forward. To view the results click here.

January

Housing Action Plan - The Community Housing Committee began work on the City's first Housing Action Plan which will set the City's housing priorities and objectives for the next six years. To learn more about the Housing Committee and their work attend a Committee meeting held the second Monday of each month at 6:00 pm in the City Council chambers, or click here.

Sorrento Square - In partnership with Comstock Homes, the City of Healdsburg and Housing Land Trust of Sonoma County are pleased to announce an opportunity for eligible applicants to purchase a new income-restricted residence at Sorrento Square in Healdsburg. For applications and floor plans please click here or visit www.housinglandtrust.org

Rent Stabilization Advisory - The City Council values all members of our community and has issued a rent stabilization advisory to address concerns that have been raised due to substantial rent increases and tenant displacements related to repair/maintenance issues. For more information on the advisory, click here.The City of Healdsburg closed yesterday on its purchase of the 721-723 Center Street property, taking another step to realize its commitment to make safe, affordable, and decent housing a top priority in Healdsburg.
“We have taken a number of steps toward our Council goal of increasing and retaining affordable housing in the community, such as working with affordable housing developers on the design and construction of 66 new affordable rental units, offering assistance to tenants at risk of displacement, and successfully passing a 2% Transient Occupancy Tax increase for the purpose of providing affordable housing services and programs,” said Shaun McCaffery, Mayor. “Purchasing the Center Street property aligns perfectly with the City Council’s goal of developing and retaining affordable housing in our community.”